Baron's War

by Griff Hosker

  I nodded, “The news travels fast, Bishop.”

  “I had my knights patrolling the borders of the Palatinate. I took your words about bandits and raiders to heart. They met your men and they told us of the battle.”

  I smiled, “Then I could have saved myself a journey for that is one reason I came here.”

  “One reason?”

  “In times past, before the castle of Stockton was demolished, the lord of Stockton was responsible for the manors of Hartburn, Elton and Norton. Since then they have been managed by a reeve but they have not enjoyed the protection of a lord.”

  The Bishop nodded, “That is true but few lords wish to farm such poor land as Norton and the other manors.”

  “If you would give me leave, Bishop, I would appoint men to watch the manors. I even have a lord ready to be lord of Norton.”

  Aimeric could not contain himself. “You must be jesting Sir Thomas! Can you be trusted?”

  The Bishop said, quietly, “Peace Aimeric, Sir Thomas has not yet finished.”

  “No, Bishop, I have not. To improve the passage down the Tees my men have made a small cut close to Norton. It speeds the passage of ships but it has also released fertile land around Norton. If you allow me to appoint, when he is knighted, Fótr of La Flèche, then he will ensure that the yield from Norton is improved and you will have more taxes. Your coffers will be swollen.” I smiled, “With the interdict I know that the Palatinate will be a little poorer than it was.”

  He looked me in the eyes and nodded, “And if more ships use your port then I will have increased revenue from you.”

  “Yes, Bishop. And, to that end I would build, by my river, a building where we could collect the taxes and, at the same time, make the town less likely to suffer inundation by building a retaining wall.”

  The Bishop gave me a sharp look, “This would not be a fortified wall?”

  “No, Bishop. There would be a walkway along it and it would provide defence against raiding Scots but it would not constitute a threat to the crown.” I chose my words very carefully.

  I watched the Bishop weighing up the arguments. The attack on Rothbury by such a large army had clearly alarmed him. He nodded, “Very well but I will visit you in one year and inspect your improvements and to examine this putative knight. If I am unhappy then you will have to take down whatever has been erected.”

  “Of course. That is understood.”

  He waved over the cleric who had been listening. “Write a decree granting Sir Thomas permission to appoint a lord for Norton and to build flood defences. I will sign it and send you a copy, Sir Thomas.”

  “Thank you, Bishop.”

  He rose to escort us to our quarters. “Tell me more about this battle. The men you sent south did not know the numbers nor the reparations.”

  “The High Sherriff appeared and they surrendered. The reparations were punitive. I do not think that the Scots will send an army again.”

  “There is a but in your words.”

  “You are right. I fear that to get back their coin they will begin to raid again and as Northumbria is blessed with many strong castles and barons who would prosecute vigorously any incursion then I fear it would be the land to the west of here which would suffer. Your land around Auckland, Stanhope and Spennymoor.”

  “Then I will make plans to prevent that. I have two stout barons there. Baron Stanley and Baron Spennymoor are both strong leaders.” He waved to his nephew. “Aimeric here has been desperate to prove himself as a knight. I will send him to Bishop Auckland with some of my household knights. They can keep watch for raiders. I will inform you of any danger. The new lord of Fissebourne, Sir Robert, is also keen to keep his borders safe. The next time raiders come south they may receive a rougher welcome than in times past. I will ensure that I stay closer to home in future. My people and my priests need me.” There was a real change here. Perhaps I had misjudged the Bishop or, more likely, it had been his nephew, Aimeric who had been responsible. Certainly, the Bishop was being clever in sending his nephew to guard Bishop Auckland.

  The meal we enjoyed with the Bishop would have been pleasant had not Aimeric been present. For some reason he seemed to resent me. I gathered that he was not as keen as his uncle implied to be taking over Bishop Auckland. He struck me as a dangerous man for he was desperate for power and his new role would make him nothing more than a glorified caretaker.

  We reached home at noon the next day. Perhaps our speedy departure and erratic route south had thrown off any possible attackers but I thought that my enemies had yet to put their plan into operation. I would keep a good watch. We left Edward at Wulfestun. Sir Ralph would stay with me for the night. As we passed Norton he said, “Is Fótr ready to be a knight, lord?”

  I smiled, “Were you ready, Ralph?”

  He had the good grace to laugh, “No lord. It is just that, to me, Fótr will always be the young boy.”

  “He has grown. When we rescued the Fair Maid of Brittany that changed him. He is ready. He took the standard of the French at the battle of La Lude. I was knighted for a similar act of courage and bravery. I chose Norton for him as it is close. You had a harder task for I was a sea voyage away. I can visit him and offer advice. Besides I have little other choice. Until my knights produce sons or we find landless lords who wish a manor then my hands are tied. Baron de Vesci is quite right. The northern manors are not as attractive to knights as the manors further south.”

  My family had been worried when we had failed to return as quickly as the others. Alfred, in particular, clung to me. I smiled, “Did Fótr not tell you that I was safe?”

  “Aye father but you had to pass through Durham and we know that the Bishop is no friend to us!”

  “That may be changing.”

  Rebekah threw herself into my arms and hugged me. She wrinkled her nose and pulled away. “You smell funny!”

  I laughed. “Then I will bathe so that I do not offend you.”

  My wife shook her head, “The child is so precocious! She is spoiled.” She glanced at Lady Ruth who just shrugged. She would not apologise for spoiling Rebekah.

  We had much to do over the next weeks and months. We had stables to build and work began on the wall. Fótr would be knighted on Midsummer Day and he had much to prepare and to learn. I had no young knight to take him through what was necessary and I had to give the time to him. When the coin arrived from Baron de Vesci we used most of it immediately. I needed more men at arms and so when Captain Henry arrived we not only had goods for him to trade we had coin to buy men and horses as well as wine. I knew that there would be men who did not wish to stay in Anjou. I hoped that the lure of my name might draw them tome.

  I rode with Petr and Alfred to the manors of Elton and Hartburn. I spoke with the reeves. Neither was as hardworking as Walter of Norton. I told them both of the changes which were coming and impressed upon them the need for them to become better at their jobs. Time would tell if they heeded my words. It was a moot point as I had no knights whom I could appoint.

  When I spoke with Cedric the pig farmer I learned much about Hartburn. Cedric had known my grandfather. He was old but I realised he looked older than he actually was. Such was the effect of farming without a lord to protect you. “When your father was lord life was easy, Sir Thomas. The taxes were not high and you could let cattle and sheep wander for there were neither bandits nor raiders to steal them. Sir William did his best but without a lord and,” he pointed to the blackened shell that had been the hall, “a castle in which we could shelter it was like taking three steps forward and two steps back. If you could do one thing for us, lord, it would be to give us a lord of the manor.”

  “I will try Cedric but I am much like my father and grandfather. I cannot make false promises. Know this. My men, the garrison of Stockton, will ride this manor and keep it safe until then.”

  “Thank you, lord. That is all we can ask.”

  Henry made a swift voyage to Anjou. The early summer winds we
re in his favour. When he returned there were just four men at arms who wished to serve and only three horses. The four men were all English and, like the ones who had come the previous year, had come from Poitou. John the War Axe was their leader. A huge man he almost rivalled Ridley the Giant in size. As soon as I spoke with them I knew they would fit in well.

  John the War Axe told me a familiar tale. His lord had fought for King John and had been captured. The ransom had taken all of the money from the manor and the men at arms had been abandoned. The four who had come to me had stayed together. Some of the others had joined Poitevin lords while others had headed for the Holy Land to seek their fortune there. Some had joined the crusade against the Cathars. What concerned me more was what they told me of Anjou. It was confirmed by Henry. Some of the French counts who had been appointed by King Phillip, had old scores to settle. My three knights were not being treated well. They were over taxed. It sounded familiar. I could do nothing about it. I had trusted King Phillip and that trust was misplaced.

  As Captain Henry prepared to sail to London with the wine he had bought, he would get a higher price there than in the north, I asked him about my three knights and La Flèche. “La Flèche does well enough. Sir Richard has married the daughter of the Comte de Louvain. She is older than most maids and to call her plain would be a generous overstatement,”

  “Sir Richard married her for an easy life?”

  “That is how I view it. Sir Henry is no fool and he is courting the niece of the Lord of Tours. He saw the wisdom of Sir Richard’s marriage. It is Sir William who suffers. He now has four children and the taxes which he pays do not support the men he needs. He is using the money he accrued following you. From what I gathered he will soon be penniless.”

  I sent Petr back to my hall and he fetched a small chest. It was filled with coins. “I would not have my old squire suffer. When next you visit give this from me and tell him that if he needs me then send word.”

  “You would go to his aid?” I nodded. “Lord that would risk imprisonment or worse.” There was genuine concern in his voice.

  “You do not abandon those who were loyal to you. Besides I can speak with King Phillip. He promised me fair treatment for my people. Even kings are accountable for their promises.”

  The words of Captain Henry cast a shadow over the summer. Even Fótr’s knighthood was somewhat diminished by the thought that one of his predecessors was having a difficult time. My aunt showed her truly generous nature. She bought a war horse for him and gave him one of her ladies to be his housekeeper. The hall would need much work and I gave him a small chest of coin to make it habitable and defensible. The ransoms had come in and we were now in a healthier position financially. I also gave him John the Axe and the other new men. They would be the start of his retinue. He needed a squire but, until there was a suitable candidate, then the man at arms, Peter of Tewkesbury would have to do. When Fótr left us Petr and Alfred missed him more than anyone. Despite the fact that his departure elevated Petr to first squire and Alfred to standard bearer both would have preferred him still to be in the hall.

  The stables were finished and would make the conditions for our horses healthier. They were attached to the warrior hall. The wall around us took longer to build for we had to buy the stone. The gatehouse would have two towers. I hoped that they would not breach the rules laid down by the bishop. We also made part of the town wall of stone where our new wall abutted it. The walkway around the wall was, in essence, a fighting platform but as there were no crenulations I hoped that we would get away with it.

  The summer that year was a good one. We did not have to endure sudden summer storms which devastated crops. The animals which had been born in spring thrived in the balmy weather. Sir Ralph became a father and that seemed to symbolise the summer. With Lady Maud pregnant too it seemed that fertility was in the air. Now that William could toddle his bigger brother and his sister seemed to enjoy playing with him. He did not just lie inertly. He could run, tumble and fall. It was good that they did so. It meant that Margaret and I had more time to talk.

  We were walking by the river, one late July evening and speaking of Ralph’s new son and Maud’s expected baby when my wife suddenly said, “I am sorry, lord, that I have not been able to produce a fourth child.”

  I cuddled her, “It does not worry me. I have neither brother nor sister. The three we have, if they are all that God grants us will do. I could not ask for three finer children.”

  “And yet you are happy to take our son to war.”

  “He has seen almost eight summers.”

  “Which means he is just seven.”

  “He will not be going to war. He will carry my standard and then guard our tents.”

  “That sounds like war to me. Guard and carry the standard are not peaceful activities.”

  “There will be men at arms to watch over him. I went to battle against the Scots with my father when I was barely seven. I had had less training that Alfred. I did not come close to an enemy until we went to the Holy Land. The Battle of Arsuf was only the third time I had drawn my sword and faced an enemy. Even though we faced the Seljuk Turk I rode behind my father leading his spare horse.”

  “Fótr fought and was hurt!”

  I could not argue with her. My former squire had been put in harm’s way and that was down to me. “If I do not take him he will resent, not me, but you. Do you really want that?” She shook her head. “I swear that I will keep him safe. There is no likelihood of war at the moment. I cannot see the Scots being ready for revenge any time soon.”

  She squeezed my arm, “I am just a mother, I cannot help the way I am.”

  I kissed her and, as I did so, I saw ‘Swan of Stockton’ as she tacked down the river. We walked back to the quay. When I turned she was much closer and there, waving from the side were Sir William de La Lude and Lady Marguerite. His squire and children lined the side. My knight had returned. The question was, why?

  The Return of the Knight

  Chapter 17

  My wife had known Lady Marguerite since their time in the Baltic. Both wept as they hugged each other. I saw Johann, William’s squire, with a protective arm around William’s son, Henry. The other two children clung to their nurse.

  I clasped William’s arm. “You are here to stay or is this a visit only?”

  He looked embarrassed, “I am sorry I did not seek permission lord but when….”

  I waved a dismissive arm, “I told Captain Henry to tell you that you are more than welcome. There is room in the hall for we have an annex where you can have privacy and, if you and your men are not afraid of hard work then I have a manor where you can build a hall.”

  He looked at me in surprise. “But the Bishop of Durham…”

  “Is a pragmatic man. He has seen the benefits of listening to me. Hartburn is yours if you would have it. Now come I have much to tell you and, when we eat later, you can tell me your tale. I will send for Sir Fótr and Sir Edward. They will wish to hear.”

  He looked surprised, “Sir Fótr? Then Johann will not be happy. He has been a squire as long.”

  I shrugged, “I needed a knight and he was ready. I could make Johann a knight if you wish. Elton needs a lord of the manor.”

  Sir William shook his head, “We come to you penniless, lord, save for the chest of coins you gave us. Johann would not take kindly to beginning life as a knight poor. We have but four horses between us all.” I could tell from his voice that he was becoming upset. He must have felt that he had failed.

  We were close to the hall and I pointed to the guest hall. “That is yours for as long as you need it. It will take time to build the hall and your wife and children can enjoy the comfort of a good roof and solid walls.”

  My wife had already led Lady Marguerite into the hall. Sir William, his squire and his son followed. I waved over Petr. “Ride to Norton and thence to Wulfestun. Tell my lords that I would them dine with us this night. Sir William has returned.”
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  As he ran to the stables his father walked over. He shook his head. “His lordship has fewer men than he once had, lord.”

  “I know there is a tale here and I will discover it this night. Put the men in the warrior hall. I know it will be crowded …”

  “Fear not, lord, we are all shield brothers. They will be welcomed.”

  I then went to tell the cook what we required and informed Edgar of our guests. I asked him to fetch a jug of wine and goblets. My aunt appeared. She had Rebekah’s hand, “What is the commotion Thomas?” I told her.” She appeared delighted. “Then there will be more children.” She looked up to the ceiling. “I am sorry that you have missed this, William, you would have loved the children. I will have to enjoy them for the both of us. Come Rebekah let us go and greet the new children.” For my aunt this was not an imposition. This was a joyous happenstance.

  As much as I had hated to be torn away from my home in Anjou that pain had been dissipated by the happiness it had brought my aunt. It was as though she had been reborn. She still mourned her husband but, somehow, turned that grief into joy by being around children.

  Sir William arrived shortly after Edgar had fetched the wine. From the way he downed the first goblet I knew that they had not enjoyed much wine on the voyage. While he slowly sipped his wine, savouring each mouthful, I told him of the battle of Rothbury, the Sherriff and the Bishop. He nodded when I had done so. He filled up his goblet, “When we called in at Dover we heard much the same. The barons there are also restless. King John just takes more and more taxes and yet gives nothing back. We heard that Robert Fitzwalter accused the King of trying to seduce his daughter and the King’s response was to banish Fitzwalter from this land and confiscate his manors. How can that be just?”

  “Simply put, it cannot but he gets away with it because he is King and has divine right. We have rights and one day they will be enshrined in law. However, that is a long way in the future. For now, we make you and your people comfortable. If you will have it, you can build a hall at Hartburn and be lord there.”